Masonry walls, and particularly brick walls, comprise some of the most popular and durable products used for the exterior finishes provided to residences as well as to commercial buildings. Such materials outlast most other materials. Their colors are generally not affected by the elements, and they require little maintenance.
In the construction of such a wall, the individual bricks are stacked or laid side by side, forming a row, followed by additional rows, one atop the other. The individual bricks of each row are generally staggered by roughly one half of a brick length from the bricks immediately above and below. With the exception of the weep hole space hereinafter described, each brick is bonded, on each of its sides to its adjacent surfaces, by mortar. The lowermost row of bricks contains weep holes which are periodically provided, every two or three bricks. A weep hole is simply an open or un-mortared space, usually vertically arranged between adjacent bricks or other masonry building materials.
These weep holes are intended to prevent water build-up on the interior of the wall. It is understood that a brick wall is not waterproof. Some water, usually coming from rain or condensation, is absorbed by the brick. Most, however, is absorbed by the mortar. Thereafter, much of it runs down the interior surface of the wall. In the absence of the weep holes, the water could build up and gravity flow into the interior of the house. By providing weep holes, the tendency of the aforementioned water build up is lessened. With the bitter, however, comes the sweet. Weep holes, by themselves, provide open communication between the great and not so great outdoors and the interior of the structure. The interior space between the brick and the residence wall is dark and moist. This represents an open invitation to all sorts of unwanted rodents, insects, snakes, spiders and other pests. Applicant's invention is intended to provide the best of both these worlds, the prevention of water buildup behind the wall and the provision of a barrier to most unwanted pests.